1. Field of Technology
The embodiments herein generally relate to the operation electronic devices in restricted and unrestricted modes, and in particular to management of restricted mode by remotely located authorization devices.
2. Background
Families of users often have one or more children or teenager who have their own computing devices, or who have access to the computing device of a parent. For example, a young child may have his tablet computer while a teenager may have both a smartphone and notebook computer. A parent may likewise have a smartphone and one or more tablets, notebooks or other computer devices. In other cases, a parent may allow a child to use his or her computer device for a limited period.
When child is using either her own computing device or the computing device of a parent, the child may attempt to use applications, access data files, use online services, alter device settings, or share content in a manner not approved by the parent. For example the parent may intend for the child to use the device just for watching a specific movie, or just to listen to music for one hour, or just to use homework related productivity applications, such as a word processor to complete a school exercise.
Some existing devices require that the parent directly and manually place the device used by the child in a restricted mode of operation, for example by directly entering a password into the device and selecting one or more specific applications or files that the child may use during the restricted mode. In particular, to exit the restricted mode of operation, the parent is required to again manually enter a password into the device and turn off the restricted mode of operation.